1Why TADS Is NeededNo systematic transmission outage data collection effort exists for all of North AmericaEnergy Information Administration data (Schedule 7 on Form 411) is voluntary and of no use to NERCEIA proposed to make Schedule 7 mandatory in 2008TADS data is intended to provide data for improving planning and operating standardsIt will help define credible contingenciesTADS will provide a partial measure of bulk power system performance

2How TADS Was DevelopedNERC Planning Committee Chairman Scott Helyer formed the TADS Task Force on October 24, 2006Task Force’s report was approved by the Planning Committee on June 7, 2007The report and a data reporting instruction manual were posted for public commentThe Task Force also conducted a Beta test with four transmission owners using data from 2006Original report was revised on September 26, 2007 to incorporate changesData Reporting Instruction Manual was released on October 17, 2007 and updated on November 20, 2007

4NERC Authority to Require TADSNERC’s authority to issue a mandatory data request in the U.S. is contained in FERC’s rules. Volume 18, C.F.R., Section 39.2(d) states:NERC Board has approved TADS as mandatory for U.S. Transmission Owners on the NERC Compliance Registry beginning with calendar year 2008 data1Each user, owner or operator of the Bulk-Power System within the United States (other than Alaska and Hawaii) shall provide the Commission, the Electric Reliability Organization and the applicable Regional Entity such information as is necessary to implement section 215 of the Federal Power Act as determined by the Commission and set out in the Rules of the Electric Reliability Organization and each applicable Regional Entity.1TADS data is being requested from non-U.S. TOs, but it is not mandatory.

5Can TOs Have Another Entity Report Its Data?Yes. From Section 5.1 of the September 26, 2007 report:“A TO may designate another entity, such as an RTO, to assume the TO's reporting obligation, provided that the designated entity and the TO jointly register with NERC per the requirements of the NERC Rules of Procedures sections and Otherwise, TO with the reporting obligation is ultimately responsible for ensuring the timely and accurate reporting of data.”What if a TO wants to have another entity (like a Transmission Operator) report its data without joint registration?A TO may “subcontract” its reporting obligation to another entity, but the TO is still responsibleA written agreement between the TO and the other entity would be prudent

6Fundamental TADS Structure DecisionsWhatever data and metrics are recommended, they should be:Comparable (consistent framework)AttainableVerifiableSimpleRelevant to various “users”Transmission Owners (TOs), Transmission Operators, and Planning Coordinators, ERO, Governmental bodies (FERC, EIA, etc.)Chosen to balance several factors:the level of data detailthe level of effort required to collect the dataand the usefulness of the resulting metricsInitial TADS structure may be enhanced and improved over time.

9Confidentiality of TADS informationUnder NERC’s confidentiality policy (Section 1500 of NERC’s Rules of Procedures), the entity claiming that information is confidential must state the category under which such information qualifies as confidential.For practicality, TADSTF made judgments that data on certain forms will likely be confidential information because it contains critical energy infrastructure information (CEII), while other information is not confidential. A TO may make its CEII information (per NERC’s classification) non-confidential by requesting, in writing, that NERC treat it as such.

11Information DisclosureNo TO’s data would be released in public reports if the TO could be identified by the data reportedFor example, if the TO in a region is the only owner of assets in a particular Voltage Class, the metrics on that data would not be released if the TO’s name and its confidential information could be identified. The exception is if the TO voluntarily provides NERC permission to do so, which NERC will seek.However, if the identity of the TO in the previous example could not be identified in a NERC-wide report that combines the data from all reporting TOs, that report would not violate the confidentiality of that TO’s data, and the NERC-wide report containing information on the Voltage Class would be released.

12Role of Regional EntitiesThe process involves a coordinated effort between NERC and the Regional Entities. This coordination is critical to the success of TADS. Regional Entities are responsible for the following tasks:Request data from TOs.Review tie lines and jointly-owned facilities to ensure that a single TO is responsible for TADS reporting.Review inventory and outage data for consistency and completeness (but do not review a TO’s source data).Assign common Event ID Codes for Events affecting more than one TO in their region.Evaluate AC Circuit outages on common structures when the circuits are owned by different TOs.

14Data Collection, Analysis & Reporting ProcessSoftware will be developed (funded by NERC) to facilitate data entry, verification/validation, data management, analysis and reporting.We expect the software to be ready by mid-March 2008 that will permit Web-based data entry. It will contain the data on the TADS formsOverall process consists of 3 major stepsData request issued by REData submittal by TOs and review by REData analysis & reporting by NERC

18Schedule for TADS For 2008 data, two reporting cycles are plannedQ1 data will be submitted by May 30, 2008 so that the procedures can be validated & reporting processes testedFull year data submittal in March 2009Beginning with year 2009 data, schedule will be “normal” reporting procedure